Vera Molnar
Latest Works
A selection of Molnar’s latest work, which includes her five part series “9 double signes sans signification,” in which she examinated in a humorous way the geometrical forms of our most used signs like letters and numbers, inventing forms that refer to existing signs without having a significance.
Int/Cont (1996)
In this series of five acrylic works on paper, Molnar explores the tensions between shapes and voids and the rhythms that ensue in the space of a 50 x 50 cm. square.
Gothique (1988-1991)
“Gothique” is a series of plotter drawings created between 1988 and 1991 which evoke the structure of stained glass windows in Gothic architecture and show the artist’s interest in exploring geometrical shapes and the rhythms and interstitial spaces between them. The prints are characterized by an unusually slim portrait format.
They were presented for the first time as part of a group show at the old railway station Schöneberg in 1988. This series also marked the end of Molnar’s plotter drawings around 1991. After that she used laser prints and later on inkjet prints.
Hommage Ă DĂĽrer
This series is inspired by the magic square from the engraving “Melancholia” by Albrecht DĂĽrer. Vera Molnar conntect the single numbers by one line in ascending order. The results are new geometric structures worked out in different materials such as drawings or an installation with nails and fibre.
Sainte Victoire (1989-1996)
Vera Molnar has developed a particular relationship to the work of three artists: Albrecht DĂĽrer, Paul Klee, and Paul CĂ©zanne. In this series, she pays tribute to the latter, inspired by the sight of the Mont Sainte-Victoire, which CĂ©zanne depicted in several of his works: “The first time I saw a Montagne Sainte-Victoire by CĂ©zanne,” states Molnar, “it was as a reproduction in Budapest. Much later on, in the United States, I discovered in a book the curve described by Gauss, the famous German mathematician. I made a ton of drawings which were stolen from me. I was furious. I didn’t want to know anything else about Gauss. Ten or fifteen years later, I was in Aix one morning and when I opened the window, what did I see? The Gaussian curve: it was Mont Sainte-Victoire.”
Works from the 1980s
In this work phase, the artist is still dealing with squares in a minimalistic approach in different mediums, such as large-sized coloured plotter drawing or paintings.
Lettres à ma mère (1981-1990)
This series belongs to a work group dealing with the structure of hand-writings. The artist recalls getting letters from her mother every week until her passing, and describes how the handwriting transformed over the years. She then evokes her mother’s handwriting, which she turns into computer drawings. Some of the plotter drawings are then covered by hand-drawn lines.
Hommage Ă Monet (1981-1983)
This series is dedicated to one of the three artists whom most inspired Molnars work: Claude Monet. The deconstructed the hypnotic effect of the small orange reflections of Monet’s Impression, Sunrise (1872) through a series of compositions in which the proportion and distribution of small colored rectangles were subjected by the computer to a combination of constraint and chance.
Hypertransformations (1975-76)
This work phase examines the effects of minor changes in parameters of the x- and y-axis to regular squares. The series is composed of four variations through which the artist generated plotter drawings measuring 20 x 20 cm.
(Des)Ordres (1974)
In this series, Vera Molnar creates a pattern of concentric squares which is randomly disrupted in order to highlight the contrast between order and disorder and create tensions in the ortogonal structure, as if the squares were subject to a vibrating force. The title suggests a word play in French between two meanings: “désordres” (disorders) and “des ordres” (some orders), which implies that within the apparent dissarray one can find an underlying logic.